Cabinet door



April 7, 1936. c, EN T P 2,036,781

CABINET DOOR Filed June 14, 1934 Invent-ow. Christian Stee scrup log 7 6is Ab'bOT'heg.

Patented Apr. 7, 1936 I -2,033,781 UABINET DOOR Christian Steenetrup,Schenectady, N. E, as-

slgnor to General Electric Comp t ration oi New York Application June14, 1934, Serial No. 730.591

3 claims. (or. 20-35) My invention relates to doors for refrigeratorcabinets and the like.

It has been found desirable to construct refrigerator cabinet doors witha body or frame formed of heat insulating material. It is essential toprovide some arrangement for sealing the door opening to prevent leakageof air therethrough and resultant thermal loss when the door is closed.A gasket of rubber or similar material is commonly employed for thispurpose. It is also desirable so to construct this gasket that it mayreadily be attached or detached from the door for cleaning orreplacement. A satisfactory arrangement for attaching a gasket is toform a portion of the gasket so that it may be inserted into a recess inthe door and will be retained therein by a restriction at the entranceto the recess. It is readily apparent, however, that it requires asomewhat complicated operation to construct a groove or recess with arestricted opening either by forming, machining or molding.

Accordingly, it is an object of my invention to provide a cabinet doorcomprising a frame of insulating material and having an improvedarrangement for removably attaching a gasket for sealing the door whenclosed.

Further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent asthe following description proceeds, and the features of novelty whichcharacterize my invention will be pointed out with particularity in theclaims annexed to and forming a part of this specification.

For a better understanding of my invention reference may be had to theaccompanying drawing, in which Fig. l is a side elevation partly insection of the top portion of a refrigerator cabinet provided with adoor embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the doorshown in Fig. l with the metal cover in position ready to be placed onthe door frame, and Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the frame ofthe door shown in Fig. 1.

Referring now to the drawing, in Fig. 1 I have shown a refrigeratorcabinet Ill comprising inner and outer metallic walls II and I2respectively, and a strip I3 of moisture impervious material of low heatconductivity, such as a filler material with rubber or a resinouscondensation product binder, connecting the walls II and I2 about thedoor opening at the top of the cabinet. The space between the walls IIand I2 is filled with heat insulating material I4. A door I5 is providedto close the door opening in the cabinet. The door I5 comprises a lowerwall or dished When the. door is closed the opening is sealed m byahollow gasket 2|] arranged between the door frame I! and the cabinetwall If. The lower side of the frame is provided with a groove or recess2| of rectangular cross-section, and a solid base 22 of the gasket isseated therein. The gasket is 1% retained securely in place in thegroove by an arcuate portion 23 of a flange 24 formed on the cover I9and extending around the frame I1, the base of the gasket being providedwith an indentation 21 engaging the arcuate portion 23 go on the flange.In order to provide a more rigid -flt between the cover I9 and the frameIl,

an arcuate channel 25 is formed on the cover and fits closely over aridge 26 on the upper edge of the frame. The door is secured to thecabinet 25 by a hinge30 which may be of any suitable type, and a handle28 is secured to the top I9 by a bolt 29.

In the construction of the door I5 the groove or recess 2|, ispreferably molded in the frame 30 I1, but may be formed in anyconvenient manner. The cover I9 is initially formed with the flange 24at some angle less than degrees with respect to the cover, it beingshown in Fig. 2 .at

about 45 degrees. When the insulating material 35 I8 has been placed inthe molded portion IS, the cover I9 is placed thereover, and the flange24 is bent around the sides of the frame I! so that the channel 25 fitsclosely over the ridge 26.

The arcuate portion 23 of the flange 24 is then 40 pressed around theedge of the frame and rolled into the groove 2|, so that it restrictsthe opening of the groove. This operation firmly secures the cover I9 tothe body portion I 6 and provides a rigid door structure. constructionof the door frame after the flange of the cover has been rolled aroundthe frame II. The base 22 of the gasket 20 is then pressed into thegroove 2|, so that the indentation 21 which conforms to the arcuateportion 23 on the flange 50 retains the gasket securely in place.

While I have described my invention as embodied in a refrigeratorcabinet, I do not desire my invention to be limited to the specificconstruction shown and described, and I intend in 55 Fig. 3 clearlyshows the 45 the appended claims to cover all modifications within thespirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent in the UnitedStates is:

1. A door for refrigerator cabinets and the like comprising a framehaving a ridge on the outer side thereof and a recess therein on theunderside thereof, a sheet metal cover for said door having anindentation conformingto said ridge, a flange on said cover extendingaround said frame, a gasket extending about said frame and having aportion extending into said recess, and means including a portion ofsaid flange for retaining said portion of said gasket in said recess.

2. A door for refrigerator cabinets and the like comprising a dishedbody portion of heat insulating material, a frame formed integrally withsaid body portion, said frame having a groove extending about the underside thereof,'a sheet metal outer cover for said door closing the top ofsaid dished body portion, a flange on said cover extending around theouter edge of aosonsr said frame, a gasket extending about said frameand having a portion arranged within said groove, and means including aportion of said flange extending into said groove for retaining saidgasket in said groove.

3. A door for refrigerator cabinets and the like comprising a dishedbody portion of heat insulating material, a mass of heat insulatingmate-- rial substantially filling said body portion, a frame formedintegrally with said body portion, said frame having a groove extendingabout the under side thereof, means including a sheet metal outer coverfor said door for enclosing said mass of heat insulating material withinsaid dished portion, a flange on said cover extending around the outeredge of said frame, a gasket extending around the underside of saidframe and having a portion arranged within said groove, and meansincluding an arcuate portion of said flange extending into said groovefor retaining said gasket in said groove.

